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Sylvain Scrimshander

Sylvain Scrimshander (a.k.a. Scion of the Dread Queen)

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Childhood Raised by his Mother Sybil, Sylvain grew up on Arrowleaf Naval Base. As part of the small population not affiliated with the Coalition or Navy, his Mother had to make ends meet through non-traditional avenues. She resorted to Scrimshaw, the art of carving with ivory or other debris as the medium. A surprising number of naval officers or passing sailors were willing to pay for wards or other charms carved in bone. Not that she knew anything remotely arcane, mind you. And so, they got by.   It was a happy time for Sylvain. He and the other children were the terror of the town (the small part open to them at least), running around causing mischief. They hunted the tidal areas for beached sea-life and wrack. They haunted the taverns, pestering off-duty marines and sailors for coin while listening for gossip to tell Ol' Dead Eye. They watched ships passing along the current, imagining what pirates lurked or treasure hid within.   Tweens to Early-Teens One day, a passing troupe of actors and performers docked at the base. Sylvain and the rest of the kids were fascinated with them, having seen few travelers not weary sailors or terse marines. The came in like a gale of laughter and carousing. What drew Sylvain's attention more than anything else was the prop skull at the center of one of their plays. Made from glass with ruby eyes (obviously a prop to the adults)- he had to have it. Later that night, he snuck aboard the actor's ship, making his way to the hold. What he found was crateful after crateful of baubles and shinies. After gorging his greed on the actor's props, he fell asleep atop a mound of jewelry. It is there they found him, fast asleep.   Fortunately for Sylvain, the crew did not throw him overboard. Unfortunately, they were pirates, well, after a fashion. They were the crew of the Lady of Dread, the Pirate Queen Sullivan- a decades long ruse carefully nurtured to inspire a particularly awful image with the intention that any lesser crew would immediately surrender their cargo. The bulk of the crew are actors and performers, only they seek to evoke fear instead of delight. They were also in the habit of acquiring new performers as children, you can never join the stage too early, so Sylvain was forcibly added as a member of the crew. Given he had demonstrated an affinity for skulking, he was inducted to the small portion of crewmembers who actually had the abilities to back up the their swagger- those that worked under the Quartermaster. Sylvain made fast friends with another crewmember named Florian.   Several years passed. Florian flourished under the Quartermaster, with Sylvain quick at his heels. He could've been a terror in his own right, no bluffing required, and he wanted to test it. Florian devised a plan: he and Sylvain would sneak aboard a ship when the opportunity arose, rob them blind, and vanish into the night. It almost worked perfectly, but Sylvain was a hair too slow, and half the crew saw his face. As it turned, it was some noble's secret stash, so there'd be blood to pay. The Dread Queen was furious. She could not risk losing the ship over their foolish actions. And so, Sylvain was dubbed the son of the Dread Queen, a child born after a tryst with the old man of the sea, who burked under his mother's rules until he broke free- to be a force unto himself. Sylvain was cast into his father's embrace.   Mid-Late Teens to Present Sylvain needed to lay low for an extended period of time, and what's lower than below the sea surface? He ended up in Undercurrent, biding his time. He found faith, a stormy sect to suit his mercurial moods. He began to take jobs after a suitable period, using the skills he developed as a pirate. Eventually someone approached him for a job...

Social

Contacts & Relations

Florian A member of the Dread Queen's crew, Florian was one of the few crewmembers who worked for the practical effects team, that is, under the Quartermaster. A few years older than Sylvain, he enjoyed life as pirate a little too much. Bombastic and loud, he fits in well with the other cast members. He is good at his job, and he knows it. He continuously pushed the boundaries of what he could get away with, how much he could steal, threaten, and terrorize their marks. It was only a matter of time until he grew tired of what the charlatan's game offered, and went after the real thing.   Thaleia Even and tempered as she is, Thaleia was hesitant to ask the volatile human for the task. So much could go wrong! Still, he had a useful skill set and is the type to adapt to the unwritten. But now she is in his debt. Drat.   The Pursuer Unknown

Son to the Lady of Dread- Pirate Queen Sullivan and the Old Man of the Sea, Sylvain stalks the seas. He has clashed with the Coalition on numerous occasions and gone against the Navy's finest ships and come out the better.

View Character Profile
Alignment
Chaotic Neutral
Age
26
Children
Gender
Male
Eyes
Gold
Hair
Black
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Olive
Height
5'2"
Weight
134
Known Languages
Common, Merfolk

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Entry 0111
27th Summer

As the monster rose from the water, the wake slammed our small vessel into the Blind Wolf. This damaged the vessel. Beyond repair, unlikely. Beyond seaworthiness? Most certainly. Our lovely crew retrieved me and Oz from the choppy waters. The leviathan stared at us for a moment, saying something in a language we didn't understand- or at least I didn't. Newt spoke its tongue, and conversed with it for a time. Being slightly cowardly, I think it could have gone better. Claimed to be some sort of ancient. I think some other stuff happened, but Nico made a pact with it for power or the like. It returned back underneath the waves, and we set off for our next port.

Entry VI
27th Summer

Snapshot of the moments before disaster:   The Druid revealed the monster below the waves to us, and we were afraid. It opened its maw to hell and began to devour water and ocean beasts alike. Some ended up on the deck, eels and fish thrashing on the deck. I ran up to the fore deck and blessed the front liners: Nico, Lumi, and Melidi. Nico left the wheel to me and waded in. Before I could seize it, the water knocked me to my knees. I had to crawl on my belly to take my post. The quiet sorcerer, Oz, joined my position to weave magics upon the beast. One-two. The second took effect. But the great current took effect on Oz, knocking him over the side. Scrawny (magic user) as he looked, and wounded as well, I wasn't going to leave him alone, so I quickly followed. I should've given him more credit, as he was precariously clinging to the window ledge on the stern. I went into the drink. Our halfling fellows lost their vessel, but their misfortune was my luck, and I commandeered it for my purposes above the water line- and Oz's. It was then I saw that the beast in our wake was not alone: something larger was rising quickly to meet our pursuer. It erupted from the waves, consuming the smaller fish in a single gulp. Quite large.

Entry V
27th Summer Morning

We joined the halflings on a nearby island to rest. It was barely a slip of land, nothing more than a few trees. We settled down to make a few plans, eat dinner, and have a drink. Plans weren't very fruitful. We don't know all that much about the Leviathan, so settled on an information gathering mission rather than a full-on fight if we can manage it. Maybe go for a kill if it's reputation outgrew it. Broke out the tree wine again. Melidi didn't have any again. I'm getting more certain that it's she doesn't drink rather than not trusting me, but not 100% yet. Newt got a little drunk and asked Ember if he could breathe fire too. Ember then dunked Newt into the ocean in an attempt to sober him up. He pulled Newt out, asked if he was sober, then held him under again for good measure. I do not like the way Ember has been treating Newt. Maybe I should ask Newt about it. Either way, I'll keep an eye on Ember. During the night, we spotted a weird scaly beast watching us. Maybe it's the Leviathan tracking us? Didn't do anything aggressive. We set out in the morning, tracking the mighty beast. Melidi went into the water to scout.

Entry the 4th
26th Summer Noon-Evening

Crew saw something strange off the bow: a large shadow longer than our ship. There were some halflings in pursuit with a small vessel of their own. Seems they didn't notice us, and they maneuvering isn't their strong suit, so they collided with the Blind Wolf. Turns out the shadow was some sort of local legend that's called Leviathan. One of the historic kings had allegedly slain one of these beasts, partaken of the meat, and obtained power and prestige. Was said to have mastery over the very sea itself. The halfling who led the vessel, one Hasira Fallohide, was hoping to follow in the king's footsteps. Or at the very least stave off the monotony of island living. Most of the crew is on board with hunting the beast. Notable exceptions are Newt (Oz also was concerned about the 'goodness' of the act), but he is willing to go along so long as we are committed as a group.

Entry the 3rd
26th Summer Morning

The day began with the sound of a shouting lizard. There was a small vessel knocking against our hull, with someone inside! It was a male humanoid, silvery hair, with a strange constellation tattoo on his crown. Goes by the name of Oz. He was also accompanied by a cat and something inside a bird cage (didn't get a good look because it apparently doesn't appreciate light). It seems Oz decided had a falling out with his former... people. They want him dead, or at the very least have a disagreement. Oz is holding back, probably a lot. Either way fine with me, he's not the only one with an org on their tail.   I took the one called Loomi up on her martial challenge. It did not go well. I don't know what happened- I couldn't land a single hit on her. It wasn't even as if she was particularly skilled at avoiding attacks or anything, more that I just completely missed the mark. I'm not certain what the problem is. Maybe I've gone soft after having spent so much time with the Merfolk? Eh, probably a worthy exchange for my faith. Still, the Tempest tests me, so I had better sharpen my old abilities. Maybe I could train with Loomi?   As for the reaction of the crew, I wasn't too concerned going into the bout about my success or failure, but the absolute travesty might be a problem. Entertainment for the crew is incredibly important for long term cohesion and stability, as that stuffy Nico doesn't seem to understand at all. -Redacted-- I swear she acts as if she knows so much, but she truly knows nothing about earning the trust and respect of a crew. She doesn't need to mother us, or keep us on a tight leash. I understood what I'm doing. --End-- Overall, I think the bout ended up being a wash. Ideally, I would've lost some face in exchange for some reduced tension and maybe some endearment. What I got was a large loss of face, and not much of the latter if I'm reading the situation correctly. Loomi liked that I accepted her challenge, but was unimpressed with my performance, so I'll call it neutral. Newt was entertained- positive. Melidi doesn't seem to care about anything aside from animals, so doesn't matter what I did- neutral probably negative. Nico is Nico- negative. I have no idea if Oz was paying attention, so I'll say negative. Not great. The Tempest tests me.

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